


Prelude-The First Heartbreak

by zefur1497



Series: A Sunrise at Dusk [1]
Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Canon Compliant, Gen, I like siblings, Mostly narration, Natsu-centric, Not a lot of dialogue, Part of a larger series, Post-Canon, Promises, Siblings, Timeskip, been on a natsu binge, technically
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-30
Updated: 2020-12-30
Packaged: 2021-03-10 20:01:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,750
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28422876
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/zefur1497/pseuds/zefur1497
Summary: Natsu Hinata had never seen her brother Shoyo play. She saw the depression after his first Spring tournament, and the mixture of emotions after his second Spring Tournament. She would be sure to be there for the final one, supporting her brother, and keeping her promise to watch him win it all. Unfortunately, promises can't always be kept, and when tragedy strikes, she discovers something about her brother that she would never have known if she wasn't there to watch him.
Relationships: Hinata Natsu & Hinata Shouyou
Series: A Sunrise at Dusk [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2081805
Comments: 1
Kudos: 25





	Prelude-The First Heartbreak

**Author's Note:**

> This is the first part to a Natsu-centric series because I think she has so much potential as a protagonist of her own story. It's kind of a mess, and it's my first fic in a few years. There's no dialogue because I hate writing it, but I hope my intro story still comes across.

_Before my eyes, it blocks my path. A high, high wall; what sort of scene is on the other side? What will I be able to see there? The view from the top; A scenery that I will never see on my own; but, if I’m not alone, then…I might be able to see it_

When she was a child, she had heard those words for the first time. Her brother’s eternal struggle, the Everest that he was meant to climb, the goal that was the focus of his intense determination. At the time she didn’t know their meaning, nor why he was telling her these things, but she would learn the truth behind his feelings, and she would slowly watch him grow into David, ready to slay his goliath.

She was 13 now, she grew up a little bit, slightly less than she claimed, as is the tradition amongst her family. So did he, in more ways than one; it wasn’t physical changes she noticed, it was his demeanor. He was more focused than ever, and she could see the passion for his craft in his eyes, growing more intense with each and every day.

She vividly remembered his first year at Karasuno, once the volleyball season was over, and he returned from the Spring Tournament. He was frustrated with the results and would spend hours in his room whenever he came home from school. She tried her best to cheer him up, and day by day it looked like it was working, but this pain couldn’t be cured by sibling love, so she let it alone for him to figure it out himself.

The second year was different, he came home a day earlier with an emotion she couldn’t label. It looked like a mixture of regret and excitement. She figured he would be the same as he was last year, but it wasn’t the case. She asked him how he was feeling, and he said that he wasn’t sure…it was somewhere between fulfilled, thrilled, and disappointed.

She looked at him quizzically, and he began to explain. Despite losing earlier than he did last year, and that he wouldn’t be able to play with his upperclassmen again, he still felt like he gained more from his final match in year two than he lost. She began to understand a little bit, but it still wasn’t clear to her. She hadn’t ever seen him play in a game, so she couldn’t visualise the feelings that he was describing to her

She stuck out her pinky and looked at him expectantly, proclaiming with confidence “I’m going to go to Tokyo next year to watch Nii-Chan win it all!” It was a promise between siblings, and they never broke their promises. It was set then, at 13, Natsu Hinata would be in Tokyo, watching Shoyo Hinata win at Nationals.

A year later she convinced her Mom to take a few days off work so that she could go see her brother play for the first time. There was a lot of begging, uses of allowance, and many, many chores promises. The long drive was over, and they were finally there, Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium, a volleyball haven for the next few days.

Her Mom held the pamphlet listing the participating teams and scanned for Shoyo’s first match on the ledger. Higashihara from Saitama was up first, and they scuttled their way to the court. She was insistently restless the entire time, feet dancing from behind the rail in the stands, she watched with utmost excitement.

The first match was a cinch, straight sets in dominant fashion, she was so happy that the first one was down. What surprised her more was the expression that Shoyo wore for the match; serious, collected, and in a way…terrifying. His stare was dead, and his focus was laser-like.

Match two would be tomorrow, but as congratulations. A Hinata family dinner was in order. He refused to eat too much, knowing the dangers of gluttony, but he was thankful either way. They dropped him off at his team hotel to rest up for tomorrow, and then they left, awaiting match two.

The representative from Kyoto, Yamazaki Tachibana, the announcers had claimed they were a good team, and while Natsu got scared a few times, it was another game won, straight sets again. Karasuno was on a roll, she could feel something special in the air, and wondered if fate had led up to this.

Day three was against an old warhorse. Shoyo had told her that they had friends in this school, it was Fukurodani, a Tokyo team, home court advantage. She didn’t know much about them, but she knew that Shoyo and the rest of Karasuno were familiar. It was a tough match, nail-bitingly close, but in the third set, Shoyo played decoy perfectly for the second-year ace, and he slammed it home, final score, 28-26. Her teeth hurt from stress clenching, but it was finally over, and a sigh of relief could be had.

The problem with close games is that they can come back to bite you later, mere hours later in this case. Karasuno was slow to start, the first set was lost to Mujinazaka, the Oita rep, and perennial powerhouse. She was worried, but she was eased by her regular joy bringer, the smile that Shoyo held on his face despite all odds. It constantly breathed life into her, and her cheering grew louder and louder. Karasuno would win the next two sets, final set score 35-33.

Hell day was over, and Shoyo was remarkably preserved, she was amazed at how he could do it. She bounced around him, inspecting him for robotic parts, and batteries to replace. He assured her he wasn’t a robot, and with a cocky grin bragged about his fitness. A rogue arm hooked him into chokehold and dragged him away, it was Tobio-chan, and Kei-san, interrupting him before he could make himself look more like an idiot. They were going out for a third-year dinner, and forcefully putting him to bed to prepare him for tomorrow, at least that’s what they told her, who knew what kind of torture he would have to endure.

It was time for the semi-finals, she was told it would be a five-set match, and unfortunately, they were up against Itachiyama Institute, widely regarded as the best team in Japan for the past half-decade. She was more nervous than she had ever been, and for good reason, Itachiyama came out strong, winning the first two sets, close scores of 25-21, and 27-25. Like the crows they were named after, Karasuno would pester the prestigious club, hanging on for sets three and four, scores of 28-26, and 25-22.

Final set began, and both teams were running on fumes. Karasuno had to make multiple substitutions due to fatigue, and Itachiyama had lost their middle blocker to a knee injury for the rest of the game. It was less like a match and more like a war, faces painted with pain, but eyes stung with a fire that spoke, as if saying we are going to be the winners.

The score was 19-18, Itachiyama’s favour, the current rally has cycled nearly a dozen times by now. Everyone was tired, everyone was sweaty, and everyone desperately needed this point. A weak spike by the Karasuno ace gave Itachiyama a chance; they set up, ready to send three attackers over, and made one final push, hitting it with the force necessary to win. She covered her eyes, recognizing the danger, but heard the familiar slap of leather against forearm, and peaked through her fingers to see the ball in the air, and Shoyo readying his run-up.

She cheered his name, and she could swear she saw his ears twitch at the sound, he leaps before most of Itachiyama can recover from the previous play, and the ball falls to Tobio-chan’s hands, spinning slightly, in a perfect arc from contact point to contact point. His fingers grasp, and suddenly…tragedy strikes.

The ball slips, and the set isn’t as perfect as it needs to be, it isn’t high enough. Shoyo adapts, but it isn’t enough, his hand makes contact with the ball, and the ball makes contact with a set of hands on the other side of the net. The first-year middle blocker makes the play, and the ball speeds towards the floor, no one is ready for it, and the game is over, final score, 20-18.

At 13, she experiences heartbreak for the first time, she watches the magical run come to a close, as the Karasuno third years collapse to their knees. Yachhan is crying on the bench, Kei-san is smashing his fist into the ground, showing more emotion than she had ever seen from him before, Tadashi has his head between his knees, the floor in front of him damp from tears, Tobio-chan’s face is blank, he sits back supported by his arms, unsure of what to do next.

Then there’s Shoyo, the only one left standing, he stares at the net, but Natsu doesn’t know what is written on his face. He turns, and he’s smiling, he had just lost in his final year of high school his final chance to see the view from the top, and he’s smiling. She calls out to him, tears in her eyes, and he jogs over to the edge of the court to calm her emotions.

He asks her why she’s crying, and she doesn’t know, but she feels like she should because he’d never see the view from the top. He tells her to dry her tears, because this isn’t the top, and while his high school career is over, he still has a long way to go to reach the top. He sticks out his pinky and looks at her expectantly, the crying stops there. He says to her “I know I broke my promise to win this tournament, but I’m still gonna make it to the top, promise you’ll be there to watch me when I do!”

She looks at him, wiping the tears from her face, and there it is again, the smile that soothes her worries. She knows he means it, and while they couldn’t keep the last promise, she knew that they could keep this one. She stuck out her pinky, and nodded, locking another sibling promise, and she would be there to make sure he kept it.


End file.
